User:A.P. (Pete) Shepherd

Albert Pitt (Pete) Shepherd, Ph.D., was born in Lexington, Mississippi, in 1943. He received his B.S. in Biology from Millsaps College, Jackson, Mississippi, in 1966, and in 1971, he received his Ph.D. in Physiology and Biophysics from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi. In 1972-73, he did postdoctoral studies at the University of Texas Medical School, Program in Physiology, Houston, Texas, and then spent one year in the Department of Physiology, University of California College of Medicine, Irvine, California. After joining the Department of Physiology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, in 1974, he was a faculty member for 35 years until he retired in 2009. During that time, he was a founder and President of Avox Systems, Inc. He is now Professor Emeritus, University of Texas Health Science Center, 2019.

Shepherd’s research interests are cardiovascular physiology, mechanisms controlling gastric and intestinal blood flow, optical properties of blood, and biomedical instrumentation. In addition to the articles he published in peer-reviewed journals, he published two books: Physiology of the Intestinal Circulation and Laser-Doppler Blood Flowmetry.

When he was the President of Avox Systems, Inc., the company originally manufactured an arteriovenous oxygen difference analyzer that was used in animal experiments to study the physiological mechanisms that control the oxygen delivered to our organs and tissues. Later he and John Steinke invented the AVOXimeter 4000, the first and only co-oximeter that was 10-times smaller, 10-times faster, and much easier to operate than conventional co-oximeters. Shepherd designed the AVOXimeter 1000E specifically for use in cardiac catheterization labs. In 2004, Avox Systems was sold and is now owned by Instrumentation Laboratory which is selling Shepherd’s products all over the world.

Honors

Alpha Epsilon Delta, Millsaps College, Jackson, Mississippi, 1963.

Outstanding Graduate in Biology, Millsaps College, Jackson, Mississippi, 1966.

Microcirculatory Society Travel Award, 1977.

Fellow of the Cardiovascular Section, American Physiological Society, 1981.

Vice-Chairman, FASEB Summer Research Conference, 1986.

Chairman, FASEB Summer Research Conference, 1990.

Chancellor’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Award, University of Texas System, 2010.

Health Care Hero Award, Health Care Innovator, San Antonio Business Journal, 2010.

Distinguished Alumnus Award, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2015.

Fellow, American Physiological Society, 2016.

Professor Emeritus, University of Texas Health Science Center, 2019.